Even If i Walk Alone

Instructing and encouraging you to live your life as a disciple of Jesus

Discipleship

Read Slowly

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The more I study the Bible, the more I recognize when it comes to God’s Word, we should read slowly. Scripture is replete with admonitions to meditate on the words of God. Meditating and delighting on God’s instruction is a regular theme throughout the book of Psalms (Psalm 1:1-2, Psalm 19:7-14, Psalm 77:12, Psalm 119:15, Psalm 119:23, Psalm 119:27, Psalm 119:48, Psalm 119:78, Psalm 119:97, Psalm 119:99, Psalm 119:148, Psalm 143:5)

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and many other places throughout scripture (Joshua 1:8, Jeremiah 15:16, Nehemiah 8:1-3, Matthew 7:24-25, James 1:22-25, Philippians 4:8, Colossians 3:16). The Bible is not a book meant to be read like other books. We don’t read God’s Word to get through it, but to let it marinade our souls. When we read too quickly, we often miss the details and subtle nuances. There is no part of scripture we can afford to miss or gloss over (2 Timothy 3:16).

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The Hard Road

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J. C. Ryle once said, “The true Christian is called to be a soldier and must behave as such; he is not meant to live a life of religious ease, indolence, and security. He must never imagine for a moment that he can sleep and doze along the way to heaven, like one traveling in an easy carriage.” That’s the exact opposite of how many Christians live today. Bad theology and teaching have created a generation of believers who lack an understanding of what it means to follow Christ.

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Never in history have those most devoted to Jesus lived a life of ease. Why would we think anything has changed? As long as God allows Satan to roam the earth, the devil will make sure followers of Jesus will be harassed, hated, and persecuted (John 15:18-20; John 16:33). The narrow path is the hard road (Matthew 7:13-14).

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Disciplined

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When it comes to self-discipline, I see myself as more disciplined than many, but less disciplined than I should be. Reflecting on my life, I find I am now more disciplined than at other times in my life and less disciplined than at others. All this to say that self-discipline is a challenge we must constantly address and perhaps never fully master.

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And yet it is key not only to a productive life but to living life in a manner that glorifies and pleases our Lord. To be disciplined in ways that do not promote our spiritual growth may be noble pursuits, but in the end, they won’t count for anything. The only discipline worth pursuing is that which brings us closer to Christ and molds us into His image.

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Is Jesus Lord of All?

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Jesus is the One you reach out to when you are in need, and perhaps the One to whom you give thanks when things are going well. But is He also the one you serve in between those times? It seems to me this is a true test of our faith. It’s not whether we are grateful to Him in good times and seek Him in the bad, but the test is if we will serve Him in the boring and mundane middle.

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As I’ve repeated many times in my writing, if Jesus isn’t Lord of all, then He isn’t Lord at all. If changing circumstances change how you think about Christ, then He isn’t Lord of everything. Is Jesus Lord of all in your life?

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Is It What You Expected?

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How long have you been a Christian? No matter your answer, I have a question for you: “Is it what you expected?” When you came to acknowledge Christ as your Lord and Savior, what did you imagine would be the result? Increasingly, I see Christians encouraging someone down on their luck by pulling random verses out of context and assuring those people that God has big plans for them if they will only trust in Jesus.

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In one sense, those well-wishers are correct. God has big plans for everyone who calls on His name. He plans to give them eternal life and bring them into His presence forever. There couldn’t be a bigger plan. But I know this isn’t what these people have in mind. Too many so-called Christians today have believed the lie that believing in Jesus is the way to success, health, and wealth in this life now.

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